Machinist chest plans/guides?

[Matt Radtke]

So I'm planning on making an ambitious machinist chest as a gift, something on the scale and complexity of the Gerstner 92XL. Perhaps bigger :D

All the plans I've dug up are relatively simple 3 drawer affairs. Does anyone have plans, notes, or anything from a complex chest with more drawers, smaller drawers, and dividers to make sure I don't make a stupid mistake?

[Peter Pedisich]

I remember an issue of Woodsmith or Shopnotes from the past 7-10 years that had a large, 2-piece, rolling oak tool chest.

[Matt Radtke]

I'm not necessarily looking for a 2-piece setup. I'm looking for a top chest with 1,000,000 drawers. The 92XL http://www.gerstnerusa.com/DETAIL92xl.html , which I'm using as a starter model, is listed at 26"x19"x12.5".

[Bruce Haugen]

A bunch of years ago, I made one using a plan I got from Rockler. However, I just used it as the basis for my own ideas and changed the dimensions to suit what I had in mind. They're really not that complicated. What I'd suggest is that you get Tolpin's book and then draw out what you want on a full-size sheet of paper.

Here's the one (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?37003-toolchest-for-my-brother-in-law&highlight=) I made for my BIL. It's a combination of ideas from Gerstner, Tolpin and Rockler's plan and is tailored to hold his reloading tools.

204464

[Ben Johnson WI]

There's one over on LumberJocks - a guy with the username PurpLev. Since I guess I can't link, find his user page there, and he's got a tool chest completed (and blogged), and is apparently working on a matching cart to go with it.

[John Miletta]

There are several out there to choose from. My favorite is the craftsman tool chest from aircraft spruce.

http://www.americanfurnituredsgn.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=AFD&Product_Code=237

http://www.woodsmith.com/magazine/sources/183/machinists-chest/

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/toolchest.php

http://www.rockler.com/findit.cfm?page=464

http://images.lowes.com/animate/ToolChest.pdf

http://www.shopsmith.com/ownersite/itemfind.htm?item=521916&Submit=Find+Item

http://www.woodsmith.com/magazine/extras/151/fine-tool-chest/

http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/how-to-plans/woodworking/2417126

[Bill Wiggins]

I made mine from the Rockler plans.

[John Miletta]

Her`s a link to an older creek post http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?145802-Woodsmith-s-Machinist-Chest-Complete/page Pic`s were sent in by a client.

[Bruce Haugen]

For my own use, I prefer the Woodsmith style (http://www.woodsmith.com/magazine/ex...ne-tool-chest/).
I've found that I don't move a toolbox much and that I vastly prefer deeper, shallower shelves for skinny tools like layout stuff (squares, micrometers, calipers), chisels and things that shouldn't get piled up.

My next one is going to be a floor unit, complete with rollers and deep full-extension drawers for bigger tools like ROS, pad sanders, drills, etc. The top with be scads of shallow drawers. I have a small shop and having stuff on wheels allows me to put things where they're the most useful at the moment. Gerstner used to have the one of my dreams but it seems to be no longer on their site. Oh well, I still have the pic. I will have to make it because I can't afford the $4,000 price tag.

[Ken Moran]

I had a Gerstner 52 Journeyman chest I paid $279.00 new for back in the 70's and now i see it is selling for $980.00. I have thought about building one along the same lines out of Maple just to see if I could with my limited woodworking experience.

[Patrice Mackey]

I had a Gerstner 52 Journeyman chest I paid $279.00 new for back in the 70's and now i see it is selling for $980.00. I have thought about building one along the same lines out of Maple just to see if I could with my limited woodworking experience.

On a whim I checked out the price differential with the inflation calculator.

http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl?cost1=279.00&year1=1977&year2=2014

So, that $279.00 you paid in the 70's had the same buying power as $1093.13 in 2014 dollars...so...it's about a hundred bucks cheaper now.

Just so ya know...

-CJ